I'm in Your Brains, the Expanded Edition
by DryadSpeaks
Summary: Written for the Quartie Ficathon!  Series of oneshots based on the snippets in "I'm in Your Brains."  This will have five chapters!  Major fluff alert!  The start of the Averyverse!
1. Chapter 1

**Written (indirectly) for this prompt from the Quinn/Artie Forum:**

_**"Get out of my head!"**_

**In my oneshot, "I'm in Your Brains," I had five little scenes, all related to this prompt.**

**I had a request to write a oneshot for each of the scenes, and so...here we are! Reading "I'm in Your Brains" isn't required for these to be understood, but I think everyone should read everything I write anyway, so...**

**Here we go! This story will have five chapters...each containing one of the scenarios. For some, the original scenario may be left in its entirety, while others might be chopped up a bit. **

**I know...wordiest pre-story author's note ever. SORRY!**

For as long as Quinn and Artie had been living together, Quinn had always marvelled at Artie's socks when it was her turn to do the laundry.

At first, she thought he must have caught one on something, but as more and more socks with holes in them started turning up, she began to wonder what was going on.

She kept meaning to ask him, but it never seemed to be the right time. But, then, is there a right time to talk about socks? Or is that just one of those things that you talk about whenever, wherever?

One day, she was sitting on the couch reading the book, when she spotted their dog, Bailey, trotting through the living room, something white poking out of her mouth.

"Bailey," she said, following him into the kitchen. "Drop it!"

As soon as she saw Artie's sock lying on the ground in front of her, the mystery of the sock holes was solved.

**

* * *

**

"Babe, I really think you need to get some new socks the next time we go shopping," Quinn said, as they were lying in bed one evening watching tv.

"Get out of my head! I was just adding those to my mental shopping list two seconds ago," he said. "How did you know?"

"Well, maybe the fact that I can see your toe sticking out of your left one has something to do with it," she said, sitting up.

He grinned. "Yeah. I don't know how that keeps happening. I mean...it's not like my socks see much floor action, or anything like that."

Quinn giggled. "Well, maybe if you'd stop letting the dog playing with them, they'd last longer?"

"But he just looks sad when I say no," he replied. "It's just...I can't have him sad!" he added, pointing down to the floor, where Bailey was fast asleep. "Wait, how did you know about that?"

She rolled her eyes. "If it's like this with the dog, I can't wait to see how it is when we have kids. And how did I know about that? I caught him playing with one in the kitchen!"

He grinned. "Well, I wouldn't let our kids chew on my socks. Unless they really, really wanted to."

She grinned back. "That's not going to happen."

"It might!" he said, biting his lip to keep himself from bursting out laughing. "You never know. I read something in one of those parenting magazines at the doctor's office where they made little socks wet, froze them, and gave them to babies as teething...things. We could do that!"

She rolled her eyes again. "Artie, they make teething rings and stuff for that. We are not freezing wet socks and letting our kids chew on them. They'll be babies, not dogs! And wait...parenting magazine?"

"But that would be a great cost-saver!" he said, sitting up. "I mean...we could buy the socks, use them for that, and then wash them and the kids could wear them! Multipurpose socks!" he said, completely ignoring her question about the parenting magazines. He didn't want her to think he was obsessing over them having a baby.

"Only you would think this is a great idea," she said, leaning over and pushing him back into his pillow. "And, as much as I think you're adorable and I know you think this is awesome...I'm going to have to pull the mommy card and say no."

"The mommy card?" he asked, grinning up at her as she hovered over him. "Does that mean something, or are you just saying that?" he asked, looking up at her.

She grinned. "I wasn't going to tell you until I'd been to the doctor, but Artie...I think I'm pregnant."

He stared at her. "You're...I'm...we're..." he trailed off.

She nodded, biting her lip and grinning at him.

He grinned back. "Life? Complete."

**A/N: QUARTIE FICATHON NOW IN PROGRESS! All the fics that have been posted so far are AMAZING, and anyone reading this should go read them all!**

**Or...better yet...join us and write some! Details can be found in the Quinn/Artie Forum, or you can PM me!**


	2. Chapter 2

Quinn was rushing. She was already late for work, and she couldn't find her purse. She could never find her purse.

Whenever she got home, she'd put it down somewhere, but never in the same place twice, and it was starting to become a problem.

Artie always told her she needed to find a place for it, and just keep it there all the time. He even offered to build her something to hang it on or put it in, but she politely declined, remembering the time he attempted to repair the leg on their coffee table and ended up using a combination of superglue and duct tape. His skills had improved since then, but she still wasn't sure she wanted him building something. She'd never actually seen him work with anything even remotely resembling power tools, which she was pretty sure he'd need to install a hook into the wall, and she thought he probably needed all of his fingers anyway, so she didn't encourage his "fixing stuff" projects.

Whenever she couldn't find her purse, she asked him. He usually found it before she did, but sometimes they'd make a game out of it (time-permitting) to see who could find it first, and he'd find it and put it somewhere where she'd see it.

She always knew when he'd moved it so that she'd see it, but never said anything.

**

* * *

**

"Artie, have you seen my..." Quinn was about to ask when she was cut off.

"Purse? Right here," he said, handing the small red bag to her.

"Get out of my head! How did you know that's what I was looking for?" she asked, smiling down at him.

"I just knew," he said. "You had that look."

"That look?" she questioned, pulling on her coat.

He nodded. "That 'I can't remember where I put my purse and I'm kind of freaking out but not really' look."

She kissed him, before heading towards the door. "Thanks. I'll be back before you are, I think. But, if not...I'll see you when I get home."

**

* * *

**

After Quinn left, Artie got down to business. He didn't have to be at work for a couple of hours, and decided it would be the perfect time to install the small hook he purchased to mount inside the entrance of their house.

He had originally planned to make a hook himself, but after thinking about it, and realizing he could buy one for $2 and install it in two minutes (according to the packaging), he went with that.

After unearthing an electric screwdriver that hadn't seen the light of day since his father had given it to him the year before, he got to work.

After reading the instructions several times, and realizing that they were written for a five year old, he put them aside, deciding that he didn't really need them.

Fifteen minutes later, he sat there, staring at the wall. His first thought when he looked at the hook was that it should probably have been higher, but it was too late. The holes were already there, and the hook was screwed neatly into place. His second thought was that he should send the hook company an email, letting them know that their packaging lied. It had definitely taken more than two minutes.

Pleased with his handiwork, he went off to the bedroom to prepare for work.

**

* * *

**

When Quinn walked through the door, the hook immediately caught her eye. She touched it lightly, smiling at the fact that Artie had installed it.

She hung her purse on it to test it out...and the hook immediately dislodged itself from the wall and fell to the ground.

She stood there, staring at the hook, which was lying on the ground next to her purse, her eyes wide.

She picked it up, attempting to jam the screws back into the holes.

The hook wouldn't stay, and eventually she resorted to Artie's favourite tool...superglue.

After liberally applying the glue to the screws and the back of the hook, she held her breath, and quickly pushed it into the wall. She sat there, holding it for a couple of minutes, and then let go. And it stayed!

She decided to let it dry a bit before testing it out, and went to the kitchen to get dinner started.

Half an hour later, she went back and hung her purse on it, and it stayed.

He'd never have to know that she'd broken it the first time she attempted to use it.

**

* * *

**

When Artie entered the house, the first thing he noticed was that Quinn's purse was hanging on the hook.

Smiling, he headed towards the kitchen, where he could hear her banging around with pots and pans.

She turned, hearing his wheels, and smiled.

"I love it," she said, walking over and planting a kiss on his cheek.

He grinned, kissing her back. "I'm glad it works! I wasn't sure it would stay."

She grinned back. "Of course it would! How could you even think that?"

As he shrugged, she discretely slipped the empty superglue tube into the garbage can. What he didn't know wouldn't hurt him.


	3. Chapter 3

They'd been at Puck and Rachel's daughter's birthday. Ella had turned one, and everyone was excited and having a good time.

When they'd been asked to be Ella's godparents, Artie and Quinn had been thrilled. Well...mostly Artie had been thrilled. Quinn was a bit unsure, but grew to love her role over the first few months of Ella's life.

It was never that she didn't love Ella, or that she didn't want to be her godmother, she just felt a bit like she'd been asked to be her godmother because she was married to Artie, who Puck had insisted was the only suitable godfather for his daughter. Artie had assured her that she had been asked because they wanted her to be Ella's godmother, but she still wasn't 100% sure.

The birthday girl spent most of the afternoon sitting on Artie's lap, taking in what was going on around her. Puck had told Rachel that he thought one was too young for the scope of the party she had planned, but eventually caved and went along with the plan, which included pony rides and balloon animals.

Rachel's attempts at keeping Ella's attention were futile, as she only had eyes for her godfather. Quinn sat back, watching them and smiling, knowing that it wouldn't be long before he'd have his own baby to hold.

They'd recently found out that they were having a girl, and both Quinn and Artie were excited. Artie maintained that he didn't care what the baby was, as long as it was healthy, and Quinn agreed, but she knew that what he'd really been wanting was a girl.

Quinn watched as Artie held Ella before his face, kissing her cheek. The baby giggled at him, and held out her hands, gently touching his glasses.

As the party wound down, and they were preparing to leave, Artie gave Ella one last kiss, deeming her "one of his best girls."

**

* * *

**

"Quinn, can you-"

"Please bring you more Kleenex?" she said, coming out of the bathroom, box in hand.

He flopped back on his pillow. "Get out of my head! How did you know that's what I was going to ask?"

She grinned. "I was hardly in your head. More like...you've been sick for two days, and you've already gone through two boxes of them. Plus, your nose sounds like it's completely plugged...not that hard to do the math on this one."

He sighed. "The next time I decide it's a good idea to kiss Ella, no matter how little and cute she is, please remind me of this."

"You had no way of knowing she had a bit of a cold," she said, sitting down beside him and feeling his forehead. "She looked fine. And she's your goddaughter. You're supposed to kiss her. And she's one! It's not like she did this to you on purpose!"

He snorted. "A bit of a cold? The kid had the plague. And now I have it. Also, you think I don't know about the plague being spread by cute, innocent-looking babies?"

"Well, you sound better than you did yesterday," she said, smoothing out the blanket that was covering him. "So it can't be that bad. And you have a fever, so I'm just going to ignore the rest of what you just said."

He grinned. "I think I'd get better faster if you were lying here with me."

She grinned back. "No way, I don't want it!"

He sighed. "Fine. I guess I'll just be miserable by myself then."

**

* * *

**

Quinn was in the living room for about ten minutes, before she started feeling guilty. She decided that he'd probably been sick long enough that it either wasn't contagious anymore, or she already had it and just didn't have any symptoms yet, and headed back into the bedroom.

As she stood in the doorway, she grinned at the sight that met her eyes. Apparently, in the few minutes she'd been gone, Artie had decided he was too hot, and had uncovered himself, but had somehow ended up with half the quilt wrapped around his head.

She walked into the room, quietly, and leaned down to see if he was awake.

"Artie?" she whispered, placing a hand gently on his shoulder. "Are you still awake?"

He moved his head slightly. "That depends," he said, quietly. "What're the benefits if I'm still awake?"

She grinned. Even when he was sick and miserable, he still made her smile. "Well, I thought I might crawl in bed with you for a bit and keep you warm, but it looks like you don't need that."

He shifted, removing the quilt from his head. "My head is pounding, and somehow I thought that might help. I think I'm delirious with fever. The only cure is having a hot woman in my bed."

She giggled. "Would you like me to see if I can find one for you?"

He started to nod, before changing his mind. "No...you shouldn't. I don't want you to get sick. It's not good for you, or for the baby."

"Babe, I slept in the bed last night, and the night before," she said. "If I'm going to get sick, I've got it already. And the baby will be fine. It's just a cold."

He shook his head again. "Just a cold? It's the damned plague, woman! I'm pretty sure my limbs are going to start falling off or something!"

She grinned, turning away slightly so he wouldn't see the expression on her face. "Artie," she said, resting her hand on his shoulder, "it's just a cold. Trust me...nothing is going to fall off."

He rolled over a bit. "Do you have a cure for me?" he said, a mischievous grin on his face. "I could call you Doctor Quinn, Medicine Woman."

Quinn giggled. "The only cure I can offer involves me getting in bed with you, giving you some of your favourite cough medicine, and rubbing your back."

"Can I get that without the cough medicine?" he said, reaching for the box of Kleenex. "That stuff tastes like someone set tires on fire, and then mixed them with a pile of old mushrooms and a toucan."

She raised an eyebrow. "And you know what tires, mushrooms, and a toucan taste like when mixed together? Or...wait...you know what a toucan tastes like?"

"I can imagine," he said, "and I'm pretty sure they taste exactly like that."

She laughed. "A toucan? Artie...really?"

He nodded several times, before deciding that that took too much effort, and rested his head back on the pillow. "They should market that stuff as 'shroom toucan tire fire,' or something like that. New marketing campaign?"

She felt his forehead again. "Ok, well, you don't appear to be burning up, so I guess I can't chalk that up to the ramblings of an individual delirious with fever?"

"More like an individual dying of the black plague," he said, shifting restlessly.

"Artie, you don't have the black plague. Unless you've been playing with rats again? And if so...I told you that was a dumb idea."

He grinned. "You caught me."

She stood up, and he was about to tell her not to go, when he noticed that she was walking around to the other side of the bed.

"Are you sure?" he asked, as she got under the covers, and pulled him close.

She nodded. "I'm sure. I just want you to feel better."

He grinned, before resting his head back against his pillow, and taking the hand she had draped over his stomach in his own hand. "I feel better already."


	4. Chapter 4

He'd been getting ready for work, when he picked up his shoes, and one of the laces disintegrated in his hands.

He didn't think they were that old, but when he tried to think about when he'd bought them, he realized that it was a miracle they'd lasted that long. Due to the fact that they didn't see much "floor action," as he called it, the shoes were in excellent condition, but the laces...not so much.

He removed the lace, which looked like someone, possibly a cat, had shredded it, and threw the shoes back on the floor to remind himself to either ask Quinn to pick up some laces, or to remind himself to do it. He didn't usually frequent stores that sold shoelaces, so he figured Quinn was his best bet.

He put on a different pair of shoes, finished getting ready, and headed out the door, forgetting to ask her if she could do that for him.

**

* * *

**

The next evening, Artie was getting ready for bed, when Quinn walked into the room and tossed something in his general direction.

"I didn't think I asked you to pick these up," Artie said, holding up a package of shoelaces. "Hold up. I didn't ask you...did I?"

She shook her head. "No, but they were on sale, and I just had a feeling you might need them."

He grinned. "Get out of my head, woman!"

She giggled. "I knew you'd say that. I wasn't in your head...I saw your shoes lying on the floor yesterday missing a lace. It wasn't hard to put the rest of those puzzle pieces together."

He laughed. "Good. Because, as much as I like this whole 'I'm in your head' thing, that would have been a little weird."

"Whatever," she said. "I think it's great."

He laughed again. "I didn't say it's not, I just thought it would have been a little weird!"

"You're a little weird," she said, watching as he started replacing the lace in his shoe. "You're going to replace both, right?" she asked.

"Why? The other one is fine. I'll just keep this one as a spare."

She shook her head. "Artie, they're two different colours, and they're not even the same style of lace."

He shrugged. "If anyone's that close to my feet, I have bigger concerns than if my shoelaces match or not."

She giggled. "Concerns? They could be grovelling at your feet! That would be awesome!"

"Yeah...because everyone grovels to the A-Man, right?" he said, grinning at her.

"I really hate it when you refer to yourself as the 'A-Man,'" she said, grinning back at him. "It makes you sound like a dork."

"Well, I have it on good authority that I probably am one, so..." he trailed off. "Oops. I did not just say that out loud."

Laughing, she walked over to him. "Well, if you are one, I'm pretty sure you're the cutest dork this world has ever seen."

Pulling her into his lap, he whispered into her ear, "My ego likes that."

"Was that supposed to be romantic?" she said quietly, turning to him. "Because I think you missed the mark a little."

He grinned. "Sorry. What I meant was...You're so beautiful, you look amazing, and I can't wait for our baby to be here so I can lavish you both with my undying love."

She grinned back. "That's better."

He shrugged, before wrapping his arms around her. "I think I forgot to say this...thanks for the shoelaces."

She grinned, leaning back into his hug. "You really know how to talk dirty, don't you?"

He kissed her neck, and she could feel the grin on his lips as he pressed them against her skin. "It's one of my special skills."

"I'm glad it's not the only one," she said, grinning. "Now, bed?"

He nodded. "Bed."


	5. Chapter 5

That morning, while Artie was getting ready for work, he took a moment to print something off on the computer, write a note on it, and stick it to the fridge.

As he closed the door, quietly, so he wouldn't wake Quinn, he smiled to himself, imagining the look on her face when she found what he'd left for her.

**

* * *

**

Quinn was scrambling. She knew she'd forgotten something, but she couldn't remember what.

When she rounded the corner to go into the kitchen, she spied a picture stuck on the fridge. As she approached, she saw that it was a LOLcat, with the caption "I'm in UR brainz, stealin' UR thoughts!"

She grinned, removing the picture and turning it over. On the back, his scrawly script had written,

_Q: If you're reading this, then you're walking around trying to remember what you've forgotten. I have no idea what that might be, but I thought this would make you laugh. Yes...I am in your head, even when you don't know what you're looking for. _

_I thought maybe, from now on, we could just have a few copies of this picture lying around and hold them up like little signs when one of us is in the other's head. I just thought that would make life more interesting than just saying "Get out of my head!" It could be our thing. Or...one of our things._

_If you don't like this idea...Well, I really like it, so I hope you do too. Plus, this will educate our daughter early on about the joys of having LOLcats in your life._

_See you at 3. Our last sonogram...so excited! Don't let them start without me._

She smiled, holding the picture in her hands. As much as she loved that they always told one another to get out of each other's heads, maybe it was time for a bit of a change.

At least, for a while. She was pretty sure once their baby started talking, she would have to outlaw the LOLcats, to make sure she grew up speaking proper English.

As she headed out the door, she folded the picture, and put it in her purse. She had a feeling it would come in handy later.

**

* * *

**

"Artie, would you sit still? Why are you so nervous?" she said, placing a hand on his shoulder. They were sitting in the waiting room, and it seemed like he hadn't sat still for more than two seconds since they arrived.

"I'm not nervous, I'm excited!" he said, grinning at her. "And I may have had a little more coffee than usual...it was a slow day, so we kept ourselves entertained by seeing who could empty their cup the fastest."

She rolled her eyes, grinning back at him. "And they pay you for that? What did your boss say?"

He shrugged. "He and I were neck in neck, before I pulled out the hyperdrive and owned his ass."

She giggled. "Artie! Don't talk like that in here! There are babies."

He burst out laughing. "Sorry. But...it's true! I owned him!"

She grinned. "I got your note. And I think that's a great idea."

"Good," he said, "because I made ten copies and laminated them at work today."

"Are you serious?" she said, staring at him. "Did you do ANY work today?"

He shook his head. "I told you...it was slow. Here," he said, reaching into his bag, "I made a couple of different sizes, including some wallet-sized ones for your convenience."

She tried to hold back her laughter, as he handed her the stack of photos, in three different sizes. "Don't you think this is a little overkill?" she said, biting her lip so she wouldn't laugh, and thinking how utterly adorable he was.

He shook his head. "It's important to be ready for anything. Imagine this: We're in the grocery store. You begin to tell me to get something, but I've already got it. Then, you whip out your purse, pull out your little card, and hold it up. That. Would. Be. Awesome."

She was about to respond, when a nurse called her name to take them to the examining room.

**

* * *

**

Artie couldn't take his eyes off the monitor, as the doctor moved the ultrasound wand over Quinn's stomach.

"Artie," Quinn said quietly, "Are you ok? You haven't moved since we got in here."

He nodded, looking over at her. "Every time we come here, it's like I'm seeing this for the first time, and I always have a moment where I can't believe it's actually happening. Our baby is so beautiful. You are so beautiful. This is just...wow. I can't wait to meet her."

She smiled softly, noticing the grin spreading on Dr. Stone's face. "Me too."

Artie reached up, taking her hand, and they sat, as Dr. Stone explained that everything was on track, and the baby looked great. She told them she'd see them next week, and that one of them should call her if the baby decided to make an early appearance.

**

* * *

**

That night at dinner, they discussed baby names. Artie had some suggestions that they hadn't talked about, and they finally thought they had narrowed it down to three favourites, both for a first name, and a middle name.

Artie had written out all the different combinations, and while they were watching a movie that evening, they reached their final decision.

As they got ready for bed, he turned to her. "Remember this afternoon, when I said I couldn't wait to meet her, and you said you couldn't wait either?"

She nodded.

He continued. "That would really have been the perfect opportunity to whip out your little card," he said, grinning at her. "Could you imagine what Dr. Stone would have said if you'd whipped out a LOLcat during your ultrasound?"

She burst out laughing. "I actually thought about it after I said it," she said. "But my purse was across the room and I wasn't exactly in a position to move."

He grinned. "We're really made for each other, aren't we?"

She grinned back. "Here," she said, handing him one of the small, laminated cards. "This seems like the perfect opportunity to use this."

His smile widened, as he reached out for her hand. "Bed?"

She nodded, wrapping her fingers around his. "Bed."


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: SPECIAL BONUS CHAPTER! I know I said there would only be five, but I just HAD to add this to make this fic complete. It wouldn't have been right to leave you hanging!**

"Artie, it's time!" she said into the phone, sitting down on the edge of their bed. "I need you...NOW." Her voice was gradually growing louder and louder.

Artie, sitting at his desk at work, fumbled with his phone. "It's time? Hold on! I'll be right there! DON'T GO ANYWHERE! I'm coming!"

"I'm not going anywhere! Just get here!" she said, as she braced herself for another contraction. They were still far apart, and she was pretty sure she'd be able to wait until he got there, but she kind of wished he could teleport, so he'd be there instantly.

He was still on the phone as he tried to explain to his boss what was going on, and was relieved when his hand gestures and incoherent babbling were interpreted correctly.

As he hurried out to his car, he told Quinn he'd have to hang up so he could drive, but he'd be there in five minutes.

**

* * *

**

"I'm here!" he yelled, as he let himself into the house. "Quinn?"

"I'm in the bedroom," he heard from down the hall, as he hurried towards her voice. When he got there, he found her half sitting, half lying on their bed. "Artie, we have to go now!"

He nodded. "Do you need help? Should I carry you? What should I be doing here?" he asked, as he helped her up. "You look..." he trailed off.

"Like a fat and angry whale?" she said impatiently, as she stood up. "Thanks."

"No!" he said, looking up at her. "I was going to say you look beautiful."

She grinned. "Thanks, but I know that fat and angry whale is a better description. And no...I don't need you to carry me. I'd probably break you."

He grinned back. "Beautiful and happy...dolphin? Is that better? And you can't break me, woman!"

He had already loaded the suitcase into the car a couple of days earlier, in preparation for the big moment, and he was glad of this as he helped Quinn into the car. She would have been seriously unhappy if he'd had to make two trips to the car.

"Artie, I really think we need to get there now," she said, as he was backing out of the driveway. "Wait! I forgot the LOLcat!"

He nodded, grinning slightly. "I'm on it! And there's one in the glove box, but I don't think we'll need it today."

**

* * *

**

When they got to the hospital, Artie parked in front of the doors, and got out to help Quinn out of the car. They were met by two nurses, who whisked Quinn away, while Artie went to get back in the car to move it out of the way.

"Be careful with my family!" he said to them, as they took her through the doors. "And don't let anything happen without me!"

Quinn grinned as they wheeled her away, and thought how lucky she was to have him.

**

* * *

**

After he'd parked he hurried inside, and was directed to the maternity floor.

"Artie!" he heard, as he made his way down the hall. "Where are you?"

He turned the corner into the room the person at the nurses' station had told him, and was greeted by Quinn, complete with hospital gown, an IV, and several monitors.

"I'm sorry! I had to park the car, and then I had to find you!" he said, as he wheeled up next to the bed. "What's happening?"

"Apparently it's still going to be a while," she said, sighing. "Can this just be finished so we can go home? It hurts, and I just want to hold our baby."

He smiled at her, taking her hand. "It's going to be over soon, and then you can hold her to your heart's content."

She was about to respond, when she was hit by another contraction.

Artie grimaced slighted at the fact that he was pretty sure Quinn was going to break all of his fingers, but he sat there, talking quietly to her until the contraction had passed, without giving any indication that his bones felt like they were being crushed.

Once it was over, she leaned back in the bed. "Artie, I don't think I can do this for hours! Last time I did this it was so fast...but they said we could still be here tomorrow morning!"

"Maybe they're wrong," he said, rubbing his fingers over her hand. "And plus, if she's anything like me, there's no way she's going to hang out in there for hours now that things are in motion. She'll want to get out as quickly as possible."

Quinn grinned. "She is like you. I know she is."

"How do you know? We haven't even met her yet," he said, as he handed her a small glass of water. "She could be a carbon copy of you."

Quinn shook her head. "Trust me. She's like you."

He grinned. "Well, as long as she doesn't have my ears..." he trailed off.

Quinn laughed quietly. "Your ears are adorable."

His face reddened, slightly. "Well, at least she's a girl, so she could grow some hair to cover them..."

"Artie!" she said, swatting at him with the hand that didn't have the IV in it. "Stop it!"

As they continued to wait, the contractions grew closer and closer together. With each one, Artie held her hand and talked to her, quietly. After a while his fingers became numb, probably from lack of circulation, he mused, but he wasn' t about to let her go, even for a second.

Finally, after one last check, the nurse declared that they were ready to go to the delivery room.

"Artie's coming too, right?" Quinn asked quietly, as they prepared to wheel her down the hall. "Because this can't happen if he's not there!"

The nurse smiled softly. "Of course, dear. We're just going to get him some protective gear, and then he'll be right there."

"Protective gear?" she said, looking slightly alarmed. "We're having a baby, not disarming bombs!"

The nurse's soft smile widened into a big grin. "We just need to make sure his clothes are covered so that everything is safe for the baby," she said, patting her arm gently. "He'll be there in a second."

Artie nodded to her. "I'll be there in a minute. I'm assuming I'm going to be covered in some sort of paper outfit, but I'll be there."

As they wheeled Quinn away, Artie followed the nurse to get ready to go into the delivery room with her.

**

* * *

**

"Quinn, you have to push. One more," Dr. Stone said to her. "You're almost there."

"I can't!" she said, tears in her eyes. She turned to Artie. "I can't."

He tightened his grip on her hand. "Yes you can, Quinn. Dr. Stone said this would be the last one."

"You're staying right there, right?" she asked softly.

He nodded. "I am. Now, Quinn, you have to push. She's almost here!"

**

* * *

**

The next couple of minutes were a flurry of activity, as their baby was born. Once she had been cleaned off and wrapped in a blanket, Dr. Stone handed her to Quinn, who looked exhausted.

"Artie, look at her," Quinn said, handing the baby to him after she'd had a chance to look at her. "I think she looks like you. Isn't she beautiful?"

He grinned and nodded as he cradled her in his arms. "Get out of my head. I think she's the most perfect baby I've ever seen."

As he kissed her gingerly on the cheek, he leaned down to whisper in her ear. "Welcome to the world, Avery Elizabeth Abrams. You and your mommy are the two most beautiful ladies in my life."

Quinn grinned, as she laid back. "Artie, I'm so glad she's here," she said softly.

He smiled at her, handing the baby back to the nurse so they could weigh her. "So am I, Quinn. So am I. And I'm also glad she doesn't have my ears...yet."

**A/N: I hope you have enjoyed this fic! It was one of the most fun ones I've ever written.**

**Because this is the last chapter, I expect long and detailed reviews!**

**Also, baby name courtesy of GLEEful Heart (aka Megan), who thought this would be a suitable name for my Quartie baby, and I agreed. :D**


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